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Christ, that was a tough, albeit very good read. The WaPo has been killing it with their articles about bodybuilding recently, despite the rather predictable negative response from some in the community.
I love fitness. I've been lifting for years, and I credit being into Crossfit as having a very positive impact in my own life. But the fitness industry, especially in the professional levels, harbors some of the most toxic people you can encounter, and to make it worse, there are many athletes and industry insiders who will defend those people and the abhorrent behaviors they exhibit. James Ayotte is such a disgusting douchebag. The way he compares getting caught sending a fake lawyer letter threatening legal action against a former client to "an unpaid parking ticket" would be a laugh if he didn't seriously mean it. No, impersonating a professional with the intention of intimidating someone to bend to your will is not the same as me forgetting to feed the meter when I am downtown, you fucking dickhead.
Honestly, to open up a bit on a personal level, reading all of this (in addition to seeing how many bodybuilders have been dying over the past three years,) is really affecting my "attraction" towards female bodybuilders. Like, I know fetishes never go away, and I'll always have an eye for a woman with muscle, but with everything going on, seeing these insanely big and conditioned women, and knowing what they do to their bodies, is kind of making me feel guilty for it. I guess the best equivalent I can think of us being attracted to super skinny women who practically starve themselves to get that look. As someone who went from fat to fit, I appreciate the results that working out and proper nutrition have on the body. But I find myself eyeing and being, well, "interested" in someone who has a physique where said physique is impossible to have without chemical assistance, it's hard not to feel bad.
I really hope a lot of people here read this (and the other WaPo articles) and get something out of them. I think being exposed to a site like this, especially if you are someone who isn't into fitness yourself, and don't really train or understand the effects of training and nutrition as a natural athlete compared to an enhanced one, can warp your expectations on what is realistically achievable. It's part of why I get so irritated when guys are like "she let herself go!" when it's clear she still works out but isn't on gear anymore. Big example is Dani Reardon. She still is fit, and has more muscle than the vast majority of women, even women who go to the gym. But she isn't on PEDs anymore, and you see so many lamentations from guys who talk about how sad it is that she doesn't look like she does in her bodybuilding days, or that she let herself go, or whatever. She more than likely was using a pretty unhealthy amount of PEDs when she was bodybuilding, and getting off them was probably the best thing she could do for her health.
Great read. Thank you for sharing.
I rarely post, but anyone who claims someone who competes on this site is natural needs to read this. This was not a large woman, and look what she was on.
"Nearly every week, Shelton answered an extensive questionnaire for her coach, detailing all the “non natural supplements” she was taking: two types of steroids, human growth hormone, clenbuterol, three kinds of drugs for breast cancer patients and two SARMs. In other messages, Ayotte gave detailed dosages and instructions."
Yes, its unfair to make a blanket statement about every woman on this site, but it is what it is.
Wow, that guy sounds like a ****ing asshole. Whining "You didn't give me credit on Instagram!" is peak beta boi.
I wish this poor woman had listened to her body (and loved ones). I don't know what type of recovery is possible. Brains are known to survive and recover from impact injuries, but quite often, brain damage due to lack of oxygen is permanent. I hope she will recover, but that's a horrifying story.
These articles generate the question: How far would one go to achieve greatness? Or What is one willing to sacrifice to achieve greatness? Just feel sad simply by reading such articles when in reality the situation is much worse.
I have always thought that it should be a giant red flag whenever you come across a male coach with "hundreds of female clients." There is nothing qualifying this guy to understand anything about women's bodies.
I've been saying this before too... there needs to be professional medical intervention on PED use. Yes, I understand it's outlawed in many countries and so most doctors don't want to be involved... but it needs to be legalized. It should be up to individual sports organizations as to whether they want to continue testing for and forbidding their use in competition.
Leave the drugs to real doctors and let these online coaches be responsible for only workout and meal plans.
I have always thought that it should be a giant red flag whenever you come across a male coach with "hundreds of female clients." There is nothing qualifying this guy to understand anything about women's bodies.
I've been saying this before too... there needs to be professional medical intervention on PED use. Yes, I understand it's outlawed in many countries and so most doctors don't want to be involved... but it needs to be legalized. It should be up to individual sports organizations as to whether they want to continue testing for and forbidding their use in competition.
Leave the drugs to real doctors and let these online coaches be responsible for only workout and meal plans.
It's the only chance that loser has of interacting with attractive women. Same for Shelby Starnes and all of these other gremlin ass motherfuckers who "coach" women.
The two most important things with PED usage are that you understand exactly what you're taking and you listen to your body. These coaches lack expertise about the former and they actively encourage women to ignore the latter. It's a recipe for disaster and nobody holds them accountable for it.
There’s some drama right now with Goob, sunny andrews (whose real name is Sonia Andreou apparently), and her ex coach/bf who has been posting her business all over IG. He may be a moron but he also said the quiet part out loud on why he coaches wellness: if he’s going to do bodybuilding coaching might as well stare at some fat asses.
These guys are scumbags posing as experts and have used trial and error on clients to get where they are. Still amazing that all that stuff from 2020 just blew over and no one batted an eye, although it was serial liar Steph Flescher that blew the whistle on that so whatever credibility that had takes a hit.
Like Gatsby seeing a bit more of the underbelly has really turned me off to the whole thing. (I’m perfectly aware that I’ve participated in the underbelly for a long time now). Not sure if this is why I’ve been angling away from the larger women a lot but that doesn’t mean much since there’s more fresh entries to the fitness world than ever, and even if they don’t get into all the fetish stuff they are walking right into a field of landlines with these “coaches” and scam artists walking around, both men and women
I've been saying this before too... there needs to be professional medical intervention on PED use. Yes, I understand it's outlawed in many countries and so most doctors don't want to be involved... but it needs to be legalized. It should be up to individual sports organizations as to whether they want to continue testing for and forbidding their use in competition.
Leave the drugs to real doctors and let these online coaches be responsible for only workout and meal plans.
Thankfully there has been progress made in this matter. I remember a fairly recent publication (I'll try to find it again) about the management of a 23 yo BB who ended up in A&E with myocardial infarction after ingesting a cocktail of the usual suspects - AAS, Tren, T3 and Clen among others - and the authors were insisting on educating medical professionals about PED use among bodybuilders (Use which differs from any regular research protocol, i.e. safety, innocuity and efficacy).
It feels like we've reached a point where these incidents are almost tantamount to public health crisis even though it sounds a bit hyperbolic to say it.
Dorian Yates nailed it when he said on his podcast to the tune of 'Why would you say bodybuilders epitomize healt, think about every single woman and man in the industry we've lost in their 30s,40s,50s, and you still think its about health? This sport isn't about health, it's about pushing yourself until it isn't healthy. It's more like skydiving and bungee jumping than yoga. It's an extreme sport, not a health craze'
This article should be a must-read for anybody who has an interest in bodybuilding: whether it’s for the sport itself or because you find muscles sexually attractive.
And the bodybuilding community (along with other strength sport communities) need to stop downplaying what PED abuse can do to the body. I remember when I was watching Bigger Stronger Faster back in 2008, where former Muscular Development editor John Romano said “show me the bodies!” when asked about the dangers of PED use. And hell, more recently, Dave Palumbo on his RX Muscle channel basically blamed genetics when Bostin Loyd died (never mind that his father also has the same issue and is still alive.) PED use will never go away, but athletes and insiders need to stop denying their negative effects.
This article should be a must-read for anybody who has an interest in bodybuilding: whether it’s for the sport itself or because you find muscles sexually attractive.
And the bodybuilding community (along with other strength sport communities) need to stop downplaying what PED abuse can do to the body. I remember when I was watching Bigger Stronger Faster back in 2008, where former Muscular Development editor John Romano said “show me the bodies!” when asked about the dangers of PED use. And hell, more recently, Dave Palumbo on his RX Muscle channel basically blamed genetics when Bostin Loyd died (never mind that his father also has the same issue and is still alive.) PED use will never go away, but athletes and insiders need to stop denying their negative effects.
As always you are one of the most thoughtful and sensible users on this page. I totally agree with your comments, we cannot keep ignoring this stuff.
I just heard from that "S" site that Jayne Stark died back in September but don't know from what. PED use? Don't know.
Don’t know enough to know for sure. I know she and had health problems that kept her out of the gym for a long awhile (back/spinal issues: I also think that’s what made Annie Rivieccio retire from bodybuilding.) I heard her competition weight was north of 200 lbs, and that’s pretty heavy, especially when you’re at your leanest. PEDs, along with her back issues, may have lead to her passing away, but not sure.
After admiring this image:
I looked up her name and came across this article:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations...
Figured I'd put this out there to start the discussion.
PDF here